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"Speech"
"Demon speech"
"Demon speech"
Thought
Demon thought
Author: Please note that "Demon Speech" is direct speech between a demon and a human, or someone with feral or wild nature.
Blessing From A Curse
Chapter 4: All's Fair in Love, Training, and Brutal Beat Downs
"Love, Training, and Brutal Beat Downs"
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"….We'll stay."
Reihitsu smiled at her friend while their children all looked at each other with smiles. "Good, now let's get all your shit from your house and-,"
"-No cussing in front of my son Reihitsu-chan," Mikoto smiled as the matriarch pouted at the taller woman. "I don't want your bad habits to rub off on him or my other child when they come,"
"I'm the Shohou Matriarch here and what I say goes damn it!" she shouted angrily while the children all began to shake with silent laughter. "I can cuss when the hell and where the hell I please!"
"Not anymore Reihitsu-chan,"
"DAMN IT TO HELL!"
"Aw, Reihitsu-chan is so cute when she's angry," cooed Hikaru playfully as the shorter woman growled at her two friends angrily. The trio of children snickered at the rare sight of the fiery matriarch throwing a tantrum and quickly ran out of the room with an angry Reihitsu on their tails…
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Two Months Later…
The young matriarch yawned and leaned to the side in time for Sasuke to trip over her foot and fall flat onto his face. He winced at the familiar feeling of pain, one which he had experienced repeatedly in the past two months. The first week had been defeat after defeat against the short woman and even now he had yet to progress to exchanging blows with her despite how hard he tried. His latest attempt was proof enough of that and Sasuke groaned as he quickly got up to his feet.
"You're going easy on me aren't you?" he asked, slightly put off that she had yet to hit him in any of the spars he had with her.
Before he could even react, Sasuke found himself on the ground gasping for breath while Reihitsu remained standing with one knee lifted up where she had hit him in the gut. She tucked her hands into her pockets and gazed at him with a bored look on her face. "If you have the energy to talk kiddo, you have the energy to fight,"
She slowly began to smile and Sasuke felt a shiver go down his spine as she suddenly disappeared from sight in a blur. This is going to hurt…He started to brace himself for the pain and on cue it came at him with a vengeance that kami would be proud of.
Naruto had finished up his knife and weapon training with Yoyate early and now was calmly walking across the courtyard towards the main dojo. Maybe I can ask kaa-san if she can teach Hinata-chan how to talk to me while I'm in my tailed state, after I tell her about Kyuubi-baka... He told himself, ignoring the growls coming from his tenant and thought about how he would tell his closest friend without scaring her or losing her friendship. While the Shohou understood his position, Naruto knew that his clan had a very explicit ideology. The first year of his history lessons underneath Togu had taught him that, and Naruto paused for a moment before making a very sound mental note to see his teacher and god-daughter that afternoon.
As he approached the building he made out the sitting form of Mikoto on the small wooden porch. The new Uchiha Matriarch smiled at him as he approached and he waved to her in greeting. Before he could call out though, his sixth sense suddenly went off and he quickly ducked down on instinct while Mikoto winced at the shout from the dojo. On cue a blur of one Sasuke went flying over Naruto's head and crashed into one of the bushes nearby while Reihitsu simply walked out of the dojo. The young woman looked at the book in Mikoto's lap for a moment before sticking out her tongue at her friend.
Mikoto rolled her eyes at her friend's childish behavior and then frowned as she noted the latest injury her son had received that morning. He growled under his breath as he got out of the bush then charged at Reihitsu who simply swerved around his punch. The matriarch smirked for a moment before she began to wet the tip of her pinky while dodging another attack from Sasuke. Her little move did not go unnoticed by Naruto who recognized the smirk and gave one of his own as he watched his mother put her plan into action. Sasuke had no idea what he was in for as he threw a haymaker at Reihitsu, too busy thinking about his own plan. As soon as she moves to dodge, I'll catch her by surprise with an uppercut. The image of his victory danced in his head as his opponent stepped back and he threw his left fist up right into the woman's face.
To his surprise, she swerved in mid-step into a spin going around his uppercut to his side with an evil grin on her face. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Naruto smiling at him mischievously with a wink before pulling a camera out of his pocket. The blond took aim as Reihitsu wrapped her arm around Sasuke while Mikoto shook her head in disbelief.
"I can only wonder how you survived being raised by Reihitsu-chan…" She said to Naruto as he stood up and tilted his head to the side.
"Ne? But I'm perfectly fine Mikoto-san," He replied before letting out a bark of laughter as Reihitsu looked down at her victim with an evil smile. "Say cheese Sasuke-kun!"
Said boy gave his friend a confused look right before he felt something cold and wet enter his ear. His eyes slowly widened in shock before he let out a loud yelp that was quickly overwhelmed by his tormenter's psychotic laugh as she continued to wiggle her pinky around.
"Get it out for the love of Kami, someone get it out!" screamed Sasuke as Reihitsu quickly removed her finger and spat on it before going back to the training turned torture. "Oh kami it's wiggling in my ear!"
"Dance for me fan boy, boy mwahahahahaha!" laughed Reihitsu.
"Please help me kaa-san!"
"Not even kami can stop me now hahahahaha!"
"KAA-SAN!"
Mikoto sweat-dropped at her friend's antics and looked over to see Naruto snapping photos away of the torture session with glee. I don't know who is worse, Reihitsu-chan or Naruto-kun. She quickly banished the nightmares from her thoughts and came to her son's much needed rescue.
"I don't think you have ever grown up yet Reihitsu-chan," she said while Sasuke shot his friend a look that promised death if he did not burn the photos. "Honestly, what kind of example are you setting for Naruto-kun with that kind of behavior?"
"The kind that won't have any trouble worrying about little shits fighting them,"
"Reihitsu-chan…"
The fiery kunoichi lazily turned her head around to her friend, raising both eyebrows slightly while giving Mikoto a bored look as if she was just now acknowledging her presence. Naruto looked from his mother over to Mikoto who looked back at her with a slightly annoyed look on her face. Having seen this as one of the signs the two were about to start arguing, he quickly put his blackmail camera away and stepped in before either one could speak. That and he could ask her the question that had been on his mind before Sasuke came flying over him.
"Hey kaa-san, how come we understood each other's barks?" he asked her.
Reihitsu looked over at him and smiled at him gently. "I'll tell you tomorrow, and I'll tell your hime about it too,"
"My hime…" he whispered to himself. The young blond blushed a little at the idea of Hinata being his, and strangely found himself agreeing with her.
"Weren't you two supposed to see Eishi-chan off to the Aburame compound?" asked Sasuke. Naruto nodded and hid his blush in vain while his friend just snickered at him only to stop when Naruto tapped his pocket holding the camera and smirked.
"That makes it the eight time this month Reihitsu-chan, I'm surprised you're not worried about her," said Mikoto and she looked over at her fellow matriarch to see her smiling mischievously like her son often did. The fact that Naruto seemed to be shaking at the smile only made Mikoto even more nervous. "You didn't do that did you?"
"What did kaa-san do Mikoto-oba-san?"
She whipped her head around to find Shiika looking at the two matriarchs, head tilted to the side and a large pack strapped to her back with a duffel bag tucked under her arm. The young Shohou heiress looked at the two women with innocent curiosity that had managed to survive the trauma of Tsukiyomi. Both of them exchanged glances and Mikoto shot a quick glare over at Reihitsu who simply smiled and gave her daughter a gentle pat on the head.
"She thinks I had you and buggy betrothed without your permission and consent," she explained while Mikoto glared daggers into her back. "Little one, would I ever force you to marry someone you didn't like?"
"Of course not kaa-san, that would be silly, dumb, and mean," replied Shiika.
"Right," Reihitsu smiled at her daughter and ruffled her playfully.
The little girl giggled happily and laughed as Naruto picked her up onto his shoulders while taking her duffel bag off her hands. "So what does that make Shino-kun, hm?"
"Shino-kun…" Naruto smiled as his sister turned an interesting shade of red to rival Hinata's. Blushing as bright as the Hyuuga heiress, Shiika checked the hairpiece she had received from her crush while her brother brightened up at the arrival of Hikaru along with Hinata and Hanabi.
"Ohayo Hinata-chan, Hikaru-san, Hanabi-chan,"
"Ohayo N-naruto-kun, Shiika-chan," she replied with a blush on her cheeks. "Are you r-ready to see Shino-kun-n?"
"H-hai, come on Naruto-ani, to Shino-kun!"
"Yes ma-am!"
Naruto gave a mock salute to his sister before locking his arms underneath her legs. The trio bid their parents and Sasuke a farewell from Shiika while Naruto and Hinata promised to return in time for training. With a quick smile and a wink, the young blond and his friend took off towards the gate, and soon after they left Sasuke gave his mother a polite bow before going back into the dojo's weight room to go through his drills. The trio of mothers smiled at their children and began talking amongst themselves with the occasional outburst from Mikoto or Hikaru and the laughter from Reihitsu…
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In the Aburame compound, Shibi watched his son go through his drills with a little bit of extra energy in his step. The clan of kikachu users was known for their strong discipline and control of their emotions, and was believed to be almost impossible to show anything other than logic. Despite the assumptions and theories, the clan was actually very capable of showing emotions but kept them in heavy check to strengthen their connection with their kikachu. A few Aburame were able to show emotions freely without worrying about disturbing their colonies such as Shibi's own wife, Sori. What caught the patriarch's eye at the moment though was the subtle manner in which his son practiced. He didn't hear the buzz of his heir's hive in reaction to the emotion, and in fact, seemed to be resonating with his added energy.
Shino threw a swift claw strike at an invisible enemy before coming to a stop as he caught his father's silent signal to stop. The young heir panted quietly and looked at his father attentively, though a small part of his thoughts were focused on his friend's arrival to the compound. On cure, his father looked up for a moment and then gazed down at his son who waited for him to speak.
"Your kaa-san is greeting your friends at the front door," he said, pausing for a moment as the next sent of inaudible information came into his head. "My scouts tell me that Shiika-chan is with them,"
"I shall welcome here at once," exclaimed Shino and he froze up at the realization of his outburst of emotion. "If that is acceptable with you tou-san…"
"I would be intrigued and disturbed if you did not greet Shiika-chan, you may go,"
Hinata and Naruto looked around the entrance of the compound admiring the large garden that surrounded the inner compound. The young blond noted that the Yamanaka and the Aburame both had an affinity for flora which only deferred in the fact that the Aburame compound had a good amount of wild flowers that they tended to with the aid of their kikachu. He remembered seeing a good number of flowers from the Aburame compound being sold in the Yamanaka's shop, which he deduced was because of the Aburame's connection with the kikachu. It made him frown to think about how close-minded the civilians were and some of the shinobi, and also smile at the fact that the Aburame clan understood his burden as Kyuubi's prison just as the Shohou did.
He drifted out of his thoughts and back to his surroundings in time to hear a soft gasp come from his sister. The young Shohou princess jumped off her brother's shoulders and shot around Naruto in a blur. He and Hinata watched as Shino came into view just in time for Shiika to catch him in a flying hug which he caught, and returned causing her to look up at him with a bright smile on her face.
"Ohayo Shino-kun," she happily greeted while tilting her head to the side.
"Ohayo Shiika-chan, I'm glad you could make it," The Shohou princess blushed brightly and stepped back as Naruto set down the duffle bag. Shino composed himself quickly before turning to Naruto and Hinata, giving them a slight nod in greeting. "Ohayo Naruto-kun, Hinata-chan,"
"Ohayo Shino-kun,"
"Yo' Shino-kun, you two look pretty comfortable like that," teased Naruto, much to Shiika and Shino's embarrassment judging by their blushes. The blond had let Shino know as soon as he got the chance about his feelings for Shiika. "So, how long are you two going to stay like that?"
Shiika shot her brother a look yet the smile on her face showed she understood he was only joking. Though that didn't stop her from standing on her tiptoes and placing a peck on Shino's cheek before sticking her tongue out at Naruto. "Meanie, I'll get you back tomorrow,"
"I'll hold you to that Shiika-ane," the two siblings smiled at each other while Sori smiled at the group of children.
The mother of Shino was one of the rare Aburame that openly expressed themselves, though she did have moments of rare reservation, only when she was in deep thought. Otherwise, she was much like Naruto with the exception of having black hair and being a female of course.
"Ohayo Naruto-kun, Hinata-chan, are you two free to stay a little while today?" she asked and the two shook their heads.
"Not this time, kaa-san wants both of us to start some special training for me that she says no one else can teach us in Konoha," came Naruto's reply as he put his hands into his pockets.
"I a-also have training with my kaa-san in kenjutsu and taijutsu today," she said. Sori took note of the small wooden ninjato at her side and smiled at the Hyuuga heiress as she looked at the sun and turned to Naruto. "We s-should be going now N-Naruto-kun,"
The blond looked at the sun for a moment before nodding and turned to Shiika. He wagged his finger at her like a parent to a mischievous child and addressed her in a mock-adult tone. "Now you behave yourself young lady, and don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"Oh, so you haven't kissed Hinata-nee-chan yet?"
"Shut up n-nee-chan man, Anko-nee-chan is a bad influence on you…"
Shiika faked an evil cackle similar to a certain purple haired jonin while Naruto and Hinata blushed as the image went through their heads. They didn't say anything to each other, though it was obvious that neither one seemed to toss the idea aside. Shino hid a smirk behind his jacket while Sori the duffel bag and showed Shiika to her room after she gave a farewell wave to her sibling and friend. Naruto caught the smirk though, and he slipped into his protective brother persona, adding a slight amount of chakra to his nails to turn them into sharp claws.
"I know you two are getting tight so I'll keep this short and simple; treat her right," he said, and Shino gave him an understanding nod.
"You have my word Naruto-kun," the two watched as Shino looked in Shiika's direction as she turned around and gave him an energetic wave before turning back to follow Sori. A small smile came across his face which Naruto and Hinata both noted as he turned back to them. "I won't let any harm come to her again,"
"Just go already lover boy, sheesh and I thought Kakashi-kun was bad when it came to Anko-nee-chan," Naruto smirked at Shino who narrowed his eyes at the comment while blushing behind his collar. "Can't take a joke Shino-kun?"
Before he could give retort to return the favor though, the blond had grabbed Hinata by the hand and took off in a speedy blur with the aid of his Bakushin, leaving Shino to smile and sigh at his friend's antics. He couldn't blame the blond, though he did take a little bit of pleasure in the fact that Naruto only teased him in order to get him relaxed. The blond disliked anyone being composed for long periods of time, something that the Aburame heir learned quickly and had come to accept. That did not stop Shiika though from returning the favor in defense of her "best friend that happened to be a boy" and making both Hinata and Naruto turn the same color of red.
He smiled at the thought of the young Shohou princess, and felt a small hand take a hold of his while the owner gave him a big smile. "Ani-kun is only teasing us Shino-kun,"
"I know Shiika-chan, he does keep the teasing to a small limit though when Hinata-chan is around," he replied, returning the smile with one of his own. The two began walking around the courtyard, taking the flora and various insects in as they looked at them. "On a lighter note, I do not think I will return the favor once they confess their feelings to each other,"
"Yeah, but only because kaa-san and nee-chan will be doing it for us," she said mischievously with a smile.
"True, I admire that logical quality of yours,"
Shiika smiled and laced her fingers in Shino's, leaning against his arm in the process. "Aw, and I thought you liked me because I'm cute,"
"That I admire as well, though only as second to your energy,"
The young heiress giggled at Shino and watched as a couple of his kikachu crawled onto her shoulder. With a shared smile between the two, they walked further into the compound catching up with each other's recent goings as well as a certain blonde and a certain Hyuuga. Naruto and Hinata were reported to have sneezed several times that very same day though only Shino and Shiika would admit to being the causes…
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Naruto woke up the next day filled with energy and excitement almost shouting out loud in his enthusiasm. He had remembered his mother's promise concerning how she had talked to him while in his one tailed state, and hoped that she might be able to teach him how to control himself in that state. Fortunately though, Hinata was quick to calm him down before he gave any loud outbursts, reminding him of the two other occupants in the bed with a gentle gesture of her hands. The blond looked over at the sleeping form of Eishi and Hanabi who were both hugging a large stuffed fox each as a pillow. Both of them had taken to sleeping with their sibling or godparent in Eishi's case whenever the Hyuuga sisters slept over at the Shohou compound. Reihitsu had teased Hiashi one day about when Naruto and Hinata had done the same thing causing the Hyuuga Patriarch to glare at her with a blush on his face while Hikaru simply giggled politely behind her hand. Neither one had any clue why Hiashi was mad about it, though they had made sure to have Eishi and Hanabi sleep with them just so he wouldn't go crazy at the next get together they had.
After a half-hour of changing into their respected training outfits, consisting of a simple lack of a jacket and jacket with a water bottle each, they carefully woke up the two children and told them about their training. Once Hanabi and Eishi had managed to nod before going back to sleep, the two friends left and made their way to the dining hall where they were greeted by Mikoto and Sasuke. Their friend gave them a small grunt in greeting while Mikoto gave them a small smile to make up for her son's morning attitude. He had yet to properly adapt to the early morning training routine, though Naruto believed it was more along the lines of being unprepared for the Shohou Matriarch's definition of training. Amongst the members of the clan as well as Rookies who often would join Naruto with his training, only the blond himself, his siblings, and Hinata could keep up with Reihitsu. Even then, only Naruto and Hinata were able to last long enough to spar with her though in truth the others suspected that the presence of the blond jinchuuriki was the reason Hinata could last as long. The opposite though could be said for Naruto, however, the blond had other things on his mind, and namely the secret he had been planning to tell his friend ever since he used Kyuubi's chakra to fight Itachi.
He paused for a moment in his internal debate to think about the massacre and the perpetrator who had hurt his friends and most importantly, his little sister. Those idiots on the council are more annoying than the villagers. Naruto popped a sausage roll into his mouth and took his frustration out on the meat. Itachi-teme should be grateful he's still alive, I know kaa-san would have ripped his head off if he wasn't "valuable to Konoha". The blond frowned in remembrance of one particular council member during their protest of Itachi's imprisonment. Mainly, the man had argued on the importance of the Sharingan to Konoha though his argument held little water when Sarutobi reminded the councilor of the Ketsueki Fude and Byakugan. Now that I think about it, oji-san said he would be taking over my Hyoushou training from now on until Togu-sensei recovers fully. Still, I wish I could find that so called Sanin who refused to come, probably some booze hound with a gambling problem… He thought as he continued his breakfast.
Somewhere in the Land of Fire, a blond woman sneezed and promptly lost her bet causing her to grab her assistant and run out of the casino as fast as she could. Once she had stopped running, she cursed under her breath and promised to make the person responsible for her loss to pay. Naruto felt the beginnings of a sneeze coming on and quickly picked up his napkin in time to catch said sneeze. Man, my name must be really popular…or am I imagining things? His train of thought was interrupted by the timely arrival of his mother who he quickly greeted happily.
"Mornin' kaa-san,"
"Ohayo Reihitsu-sensei,"
The matriarch smiled at the two and in a burst of speed, came up behind them and gave them a large hug, pulling them out of their seats in the process. "I was just thinking about you two kids, ready for your training now?"
"Hell yeah, what about you Hinata-chan?" asked Naruto as he took one last bite off his pancake, chasing it done with his orange juice.
"H-hai, where will we be t-training at?" the two friends looked to their teacher who smiled at them and swiped one of Naruto's sausages, swatting his hand as he tried to retake it.
"My training room of course now come on kids or I'll have Gai-kun help me with your taijutsu training," One yellow haired blur and a dark blue haired blur shot out of the dining hall leaving Mikoto to shake her head at Reihitsu while Sasuke grumbled under his breath. Seeing him still there, the matriarch walked over to him and quietly whispered into his ear. "I wonder if Anko-chan would like to help with your training,"
Sasuke shot out of the room in a frenzied blur while Mikoto simply sweat-dropped and Reihitsu chuckled darkly under her breath. The matriarch looked over to her friend with a glint in her eyes but a sharp look from Mikoto stopped her from swiping one of her sausages. "Try it and you'll die."
"Is that a challenge sis'?"
The training room Reihitsu had referred to, where two friends were currently waiting for the owner to come to was something that held an aura of awkward balance between order and chaos. Mostly chaos which fit the matriarch's personality as a wild force of nature that was somehow kept in check from becoming too wild, which they knew was from her training. The bar on the ceiling which was for crunches and chin-ups was just the tip of the iceberg as Naruto and Hinata saw a wooden dummy in the back along with a set of heavy weights and a weight bar. Before they could take the rest of the room into account they heard a loud shout followed by a scream that made them jump. The scream was soon followed by a familiar maniacal laugh along with several curses and someone throwing a chair at a wall.
Hinata looked over at Naruto who listened carefully for a while longer before smiling and mouthing his mother's name. She nodded in understanding and after a while blushed then quickly turned away leaving Naruto slightly confused at her actions before realizing he had been staring at her. My heart keeps beating like kaa-san hits the training dummies, and my face feels like its burning whenever she looks at me like that. He glanced over at her carefully in time to catch a full glimpse of her profile and found himself staring at her differently than normal. The young blond couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was something about looking at Hinata that made his heart speed up and his thoughts focus on the young heiress in front of him. She looks, not kawaii, but something better than just kawaii. Naruto raked his brain for the word in his vast yet unused vocabulary to describe his friend and that's when he noticed a particular scent in the room. A scent that he knew could not belong to his mother and the only one close to him that could possibly have it couldn't be the source. That scent, I've smelt it before…
"Hinata-chan, do you smell lavender?" Naruto politely asked and to his surprise she jumped up at his voice with a heavy blush on her face. He took a moment to sniff the air for the scent, and noticed that it was somewhere inside of the room.
"N-n-naruto-kun!" she squeaked as her friend closed his eyes and continued to follow his nose. He began to turn his head slowly while sniffing the air to check the scent, doing this with every slight turn of his head until at last he unknowingly was looking in Hinata's direction.
Curious about the scent and the strange sensation he was feeling, Naruto began to move closer to the now blushing heiress who was too shy to speak as the blond drew closer to her. Lavender, I know that scent from somewhere but where and why am I so concerned about it? Instinct was beginning to drive him, but not the instinct of a shinobi that would have told him to sit still. No, the instincts that were driving Naruto now and overriding his training were that of one of nature's greatest trackers, a fox. Before I fell asleep from the fight, I smelled lavender close to me and I remember protecting that scent. With each whiff Naruto took another step forward, unaware that he was beginning to walk on all fours towards the source of the pleasant scent. Each step brought him closer and closer to finding the scent's origin while for Hinata each step he took caused her to blush darker and darker. I have to find the lavender kitsune, she's important to me. The two children were so focused on their own situation that neither of them noticed the sudden silence outside of the room. So entranced by each other's actions though Naruto did not know so, they also didn't notice Reihitsu slide the door shut behind her quietly and the matriarch leaned back to observe the two closely.
First was his sense of smell getting better, then his hearing, and just last week the kid was able to detect Kousei during stealth training…the matriarch watched as Naruto stopped in front of Hinata and began sniffing furiously at her knees. He paused for a moment as if in thought, then moved from her knees to her stomach. Reihitsu smirked at the new shade of red on Hinata's face though her thoughts were not focused solely on the show before her. The seal is designed to only filter chakra into Naruto's system and prevent fuzzy-ass from taking over. During the fight, his actions were a mix of his regular fighting style and the movements of a fox. She paused for a moment in her ponderings to watch her son begin to move his head up towards his friend's chest. The poor girl was on the verging of fainting when the young blond suddenly stopped and sat back on his legs like a canine would. Confused, Hinata watched Naruto tilt his head to one side before cautiously take a step forward and began sniffing again. It's possible that he's using a form of my technique and retaining some of his human instincts. Something about that marking and now this has the words fuzzy ass written all over them. Reihitsu resumed observing the two and Naruto finally was directly in front of Hinata in a low crouch with his nose an inch away from Hinata's. The young heiress looked as if she was going to combust at the slightest sign of movement from her crush, and the observing matriarch began counting down silently in her head.
If his human instincts are regaining dominance this fast, his fox instincts should make one last stand right about now. On cue the blonde leaned forward and began rubbing his cheek against Hinata's much to her embarrassment as she opened her mouth to squeak but nothing came out. Shit, now I wish I hadn't broke that camera over Chizu's head now, Reihitsu mused as a smile spread across her face. Let's see, he should be back to human instincts soon. I wonder what he thinks he's rubbing cheeks with. The woman took a moment to ponder her question while keeping an eye on the two children to see who would react first.
Inside of Naruto's mind, the young jinchuuriki was in a heaven that smelled of lavender and felt of smooth soft fur. He had hoped to find the young female kit he had protected during the hunt of the weasel under his mother's guidance. The battle had been too pitched for him to catch the female's name, though her scent of lavender had caught his attention and he managed put it to memory before falling asleep. Now that he had found her after two months, he wanted to see her for himself and so Naruto slowly opened his eyes and found himself cheek to cheek with Hinata. Wow, she looks just like hime-wait a second that is hime! His eyes shot open wide as he went from feeling happy to shocked within a manner of seconds. If Hinata-chan smells like lavender and I was tracking a lavender scent…The trail of thought led him to the memories of what he had been doing while acting foxy and he simply stared off into space for a moment. Then his mind went into overload as the memories of his actions hit him.
"I-I-I-I rubbed y-y-y-our c-c-c-heek…" Naruto stuttered out as his face began to turn red.
"H-h-hai…" Hinata began tapping her fingers together in her usual nervous habit at a faster pace than she had ever done before. She slowly lifted her gaze up to Naruto's chest not daring to look at the cheek that had been up against hers just a few minutes earlier. "N-n-naruto-kun, a-a-a-no, I-I-I-I…"
"G-g-g-omen, I-I-I-I was j-j-just-,"
"-y-y-y-ou s-s-s-niffed me," she finished and Naruto gulped.
He began to sweat nervously as he tried to think of something to say but nothing came out right in his head. With a quick breath of air, Naruto said the best thing he could think of and prayed that it would work. "G-g-guess t-t-that jutsu I used t-t-to fight Itach-teme has s-s-some side-effects!"
"H-hai, is t-t-that why y-y-you acted l-l-like a fox?" her words caused Naruto to freeze up much to Hinata's worry as she began to connect the two events together. The young heiress gathered her courage up for a brief moment and quickly spoke before she could lose her nerve. "Ano, y-y-y-you d-d-didn't use h-h-handseals…"
Naruto blinked a few times before he slowly gulped and began to shake with worry. He had hoped she wouldn't ask that question as he knew the only answer he could give without lying to his best friend was the exact answer he feared to give. I can't lie to her because then when she finds out about Kyuubi she'll think I can't trust her and leave me. The blond began to play with his dog-tags in a vain attempt to calm himself down. If I tell her the truth she could accept it, but she might get hurt because of me. What if I tell her and instead of accepting me, she fears me and runs away from me! That single thought broke through all the others and Naruto began to shake madly at the horror of Hinata leaving him out of fear he might unleash Kyuubi on her. Images of Hinata's face with tears streaming down her cheeks and a large frown on her face with eyes full of fear and grief flashed through his mind rapidly, causing his eyes to tear up in fear of her rejection. What do I do? I don't want to lose Hinata-chan!
Said heiress was beginning to tear up like her friend over her own question and the effects it appeared to have on him. Oh no, I shouldn't have asked him! Why did I have to say he acted like a fox? The part of her that had suggested the idea was berating itself while the other was worrying as much as she was over Naruto's welfare. With her crush on the verge of tears over something she had said Hinata began to wish she had never spoken while their observer quickly stepped in and placed her hands on their shoulders.
"R-r-r-reihitsu-san?"
"Kaa-san?"
The matriarch looked at the two carefully for a moment before wiping each child's tears away. She then sat down on the floor, positioning herself so that each child was in arms reach before speaking to them. "Go ahead and tell her about your secret Naruto,"
"W-w-what secret?" asked Hinata.
"An S-Class secret that only Naruto can tell anyone without being punished for it, though those bastards and bitches that call themselves civilians haven't obeyed it," Reihitsu growled, her pupils seeming to dilate as she had done when fighting Itachi for a moment only to return to normal as she relaxed. With her anger under control, she turned to Naruto and gave him a comforting smile. "She won't run son, trust me. If she's anything like her mom, I think you'll be relieved at her reaction,"
Naruto looked from his mother to his friend and then back again with a worried look. The matriarch nodded to him while Hinata looked at Naruto who still had a few tears near the edge of his eyes, yet he decided to trust his mother's instincts once again.
"Hinata-chan, I didn't want to tell you because I was afraid you'd hate me afterwards and would stop being my friend," he quietly said, and immediately jumped at Hinata's sudden outburst.
"NO!"
She clamped her hands over her mouth after she shouted while Naruto stared at her in shock. After a little while of staring at each other, Hinata slowly lowered her hands and began tapping her fingers together.
"N-n-no I won't l-l-leave you N-n-naruto-kun, you p-p-protect me a-a-and…" She trailed off unable to finish her sentence. Yet what she had been able to say was enough to dispel Naruto's fears long enough for his determination to kick in. "O-onegai, tell me,"
"…Okay. You know how I've been getting better at smelling, hearing stuff, and how I acted like a fox that night?" he asked and waited for her to nod before he continued in a serious tone that Hinata immediately sat up attentively when she heard it. It was a tone that Naruto had only spoken in once before tearing into Itachi with dark red claws made of chakra. "The reason why I acted like a fox is the same reason why I have these whisker marks, why the villagers see me as a demon and why I have that mark you saw on my chest,"
Naruto paused for a moment to let Hinata absorb the information and prepare herself for his explanation. He quietly gave a small hopeful prayer for his sake and Hinata's before he took in a deep breath, collected his thoughts, and strengthened his resolve before he could lose his nerve. …I hope we can still be friends after this…
With one hand he slowly took off his shirt and with the other he activated the Tate Hyoushou with his arm stretched out to the side. At once the familiar violet-red shield came to life along with the appearance of a black spiral around his navel with eight lines of script coming circling around it. Hinata stared at the seal in surprise while Naruto pointed at the center of the seal with a grim frown on his face.
"Hinata-chan, I am the jailor and prison of the Kyuubi no Youko, Shohou Uzumaki Naruto," He stated as his friend gasped and looked from the seal to his eyes, unable to voice her numerous questions exploding in her head from the shock. Sensing the mixed emotions of the two children, Reihitsu placed her hand on Naruto's shoulder to comfort while taking the opportunity to speak on his behalf.
"The first history lesson about the Kyuubi's attack in the academy is only half the story princess, the other half can only be revealed to someone when Naruto willingly reveals his status as a jinchuuriki to them. You see princess, Kyuubi cannot be killed by someone like me, Kakashi, or Hizuren himself, he's a powerful spirit and the only way to deal with something of that class of creature requires a different method," she paused for a moment in a similar manner to Naruto who had done the same thing earlier and she sighed. "What you see on Naruto's stomach is two sets seals, the one that pulled the fuzzy bastard into our little blond, and the two that allow him to use the bastard's chakra while making she he's still on his leash,"
Reihitsu became silent after her explanation and watched the two carefully for the slightest reaction that might come up. On her right, Naruto sat with his eyes staring dead at the ground with his Hyoushou deactivated along with the disappearance of the seal. Despite the disappearance however, he kept his shirt off being too worried about his friend's thoughts to care about manners or etiquette. Not that she could blame him for it as she herself could remember a time when her husband had done the same when explaining his bloodline to her. I wish you were here Toan-kun, you were better at this shit than I ever could be, she thought as she lifted her gaze over to Hinata.
The young heiress had remained in a state of shock yet the subtle shaking of her body and the slight trembling of her lips gave some relief to Reihitsu. She silently rejoiced at the signs, though she quickly calmed down when she looked back over to Naruto who had not yet noticed the trembling lip yet. Fuck, he's too shaken to notice it and I can't always do his job for him, damn your villagers! If you shitheads hadn't made him an outcast…The following thoughts caused a ripple of killing intent to come off of Reihitsu, causing the two children to jump at the action. Hinata took a moment to look at Naruto who was now gazing at his mother in surprise and she quickly followed his gaze, gasping in surprise at what she saw.
"Reihitsu-san, y-y-your eyes a-a-are-,"
"-My pupils are like a dog's right?" she flashed them a toothy grin, showing over her sharp looking canines turned fangs off with pride.
"How did you do that kaa-san? I didn't even see you do a hand seal," Naruto added in a quiet tone, still worrying about Hinata's opinion of him now.
The matriarch smiled at him and before either one could say anything; she took a small sniff of the air for a moment and turned to Hinata. "I can smell your scent like Naruto can but before I explain a lot of shit to you, princess, I think Naruto needs his answer now or he's going to be keeping us up tonight from crying…"
Hinata gasped in horror at her slow response and she immediately turned to Naruto and began sniffling as tears started to fall from her eyes. I didn't know why I liked Naruto-kun before, when I first met him, I thought he was my guardian, she looked over at his dead eyes and she felt part of her heart cry at the sight of his energetic orbs being replaced with lifeless ones. The blonde's eyes had always fascinated her and whenever they sparkled with his boundless energy fueling them, she couldn't help but smile at the sight. They had cheered her up when she was sad, given her courage when they burned with determination, and when she needed his help, they seemed to swirl like a pair of deep blue maelstroms that would carry away from her troubles. For Hinata to see those exquisite eyes lifeless and cold made her heart weep over the loss of the twin stars that had given her so much hope and light. He's not just my guardian, he's the whole village, no, the world's guardian. She corrected herself, and with that thought in mind, the heiress quietly crawled over towards Naruto.
The poor blond was too busy with the images of Hinata's reaction of shock, horror, and surprise on her face to notice her movement. He did not realize she had moved or that she was already in front of him until he a pair of small arms brought him out of his daze. Someone's hugging me? Naruto slowly looked down at the person and his eyes widened in surprise to see Hinata hugging him and crying into his chest. The young heiress was say something between sobs as the confused boy simply stared at her in disbelief while trying to catch some of her words.
"I-I-I'm so sorry *sob* Naruto-kun! You *sob* a-a-are doing so *sob* much for K-k-Konoha and *sob*," she cried. The mere sound of sadness in her voice snapped him out of his trance and he quickly wrapped his arms around her, stroking her hair in an attempt to calm her down. "I-I-I hate *sob* being s-s-so *sob* weak t-t-t-hat *sob* I c-c-can't help you and I'm *sob* j-j-j-just a friend…"
"We're still friends right?" asked Naruto and Hinata sniffled and looked up at him.
"H-h-hai, I *hic* will a-a-always be *hic* your friend N-n-naruto-kun," she replied.
The heiress gasped as a pure crystal blue glow caught her attention as well as Naruto's and they both looked at the source of the glow; his new marking of a star in a sphere on his chest. Neither one had any clue what the change in colors meant or why the mark was glowing yet Naruto did feel lighter than before. It was as if merely sharing his secret with Hinata and her acceptance of him had removed a large weight from his mind. The two friends gazed at the mark for a little while before Naruto broke out into a grin and suddenly wrapped his arms around Hinata, giving her a warm hug and smiling at her with tears in his eyes.
Her own eyes began to fill with tears again out of fear that she had made her crush sad again, only she didn't hear sad filled sobs or despair soaked moans. To her great surprise Naruto was happily and truly laughing that was from true feelings of relief and overwhelming joy within his heart. As she listened to his laughter, Hinata felt her own sadness wash away and soon she was laughing with her friend while Reihitsu simply smiled at the two and wiped a tear away out of her eye.
After a while of laughing and crying they both settled down though Hinata remained in Naruto's lap with a healthy blush on her slightly swollen cheeks. The young blond still had his arms wrapped around her body yet she made no effort to get away and simply enjoyed the feeling of warmth from his presence.
"Hinata-chan, arigatou…" he whispered.
"F-f-for what Naruto-kun?" she asked and her crush smiled at her.
"For being my friend even though I have fuzzy in me,"
The comment brought a giggle out of Hinata while Reihitsu on the other hand burst out in laughter at Kyuubi's infamous nickname. Naruto snickered at the image of a chibi-Kyuubi being hugged to death by all the children in the Shohou clan along with Hanabi and Eishi. However funny it was to the trio though, the bijuu in question was beginning to glow red with rage at the slight to his species and fame. "Insolent little whelp of a kit, if this infernal seal was not at the peak of strength at this very moment and I had my body, I would rip that fuzz you call hair off and force you to eat it!" Kyuubi roared angrily, yet his threat did nothing more than send Naruto into a full blown bout of laughter while the king of foxes moved his tails from side to side in anger. Hinata looked at Naruto with her head tilted to the side in confusion and for a brief moment he simply noted how cute she looked. She normally looks cute, but now, she looks…beautiful…The blond didn't risk giving his tenant ammo for a comeback and quietly had the thought zoom across the ceiling of his mind out of Kyuubi's sight but not his other senses as he continued to stare at his friend's face.
You may have hidden your thoughts from me this time, but it shall not happen again…Kyuubi smirked while Naruto noticed Hinata's lips were moving. "Huh?"
"N-naruto-kun I asked w-w-what are t-t-the benefits of Kyuubi-sama-a-a being in you," she said, her respectful use of honorifics temporarily dispelling the great bijuu's anger. "Ah, the little princess is wise to give me the respect I deserve as befits one such as myself."
"A large overgrown furball who chases after my mom in his dreams deserves a good kick to his groin," replied Naruto and he tuned out Kyuubi's snort in time to give an answer to Hinata. "Well I heal faster than even a medic nin, oh and I also have the Ketsueki Fude like Shiika-nee-chan and Kousei-ani-kun have,"
"A-a-ano, how can you h-h-have it if y-you're not a Shohou by b-b-blood?" she asked innocently, and looked away out of embarrassment of her blunt question. "Gomen, I-I-I shouldn't have a-a-asked…"
Naruto shook his head at her then gave her a big smile. "It's okay Hinata-chan, ever since Kyuubi started healing me and helping my body to produce more blood when I was younger, the seal started to filter some of his chakra into my bloodstream too. With how strong the filtered chakra is, my blood is just like oji-san's, saturated with a lot of chakra,"
"Plus with his large chakra stores still getting the normal amount of fuzzy-ass's chakra filter in he doesn't have the same jutsu rank restriction that the others have," Reihitsu added and she ruffled her son's hair playfully which caused him to glare at her and squirm out from under her hand. Hinata giggled at the two while the matriarch quietly smiled at the strengthened bond between the two children. "I'm glad to see you two are even better friends now than before all this fuzzy ass business because this new training is going to help both of you,"
"Really?"
"H-h-how?"
Reihitsu grinned and she pointed the Kagami tattoo on her shoulder mirroring the one on Naruto's shoulder. "Kids, my clan and all of its members in these lands of the shinobi are shinobi second, and berserkers first. We don't spend our time in battle creating complex plans. We simply act on our instincts and remove any enemy in our path,"
The two children stared dumbfounded in silence while Reihitsu began checking the edge on her nails and using a knife to file them down to smaller points. Hinata was amazed that someone like Naruto's mother who while wild and energetic like her son could possess such a frowned upon ability. Shinobi were respected as masters of stealth and renowned for their skills in assassinations and being invisible. A berserker on the other hand was a brawler with almost no restraint at all and sacrificed stealth for brute strength and fury. Yet sitting in front of her was one of them and also an elite Jonin with the very nature that contradicted everything a shinobi was trained to do. Naruto shared Hinata's thoughts on the idea that his mother was both a berserker and a shinobi though part of him was curious as he remembered the fight with Itachi two months before. If kaa-san is a berserker, then how come she didn't attack me when we were fighting against the teme? And how come she was only attacking the teme and no one else, I thought berserkers attacked anyone in their way. She seemed to understand the children's confusion and Reihitsu gestured for them to move closer to her.
They quietly obeyed and Naruto moved closer while Hinata looked at Reihitsu with amazement. She shivered a little when she looked at the matriarch's eyes yet she calmed herself down with a few deep breaths of air and then spoke. "Reihitsu-san, i-i-if you're a berserker-r-r, how can y-y-you control yourself?"
"Yeah, how come you fought with me against the teme and not against me and the teme, weren't you in berserker mode then?" Naruto added in and the pair waited for Reihitsu's reply. She smiled at the two and her pupils returned to normal along with her teeth and nail much to their amazement.
"Here's the answer to both your questions, I'm not your normal berserker. Sure I have the normal frenzy any regular berserker does but unlike them when I really go wild, I am aware I'm wild," Noting their confused looks, Reihitsu sighed and scratched her head for a minute as she tried to think of the best explanation. "Okay, you know how the Inuzaka use jutsu to act like their partners do in battle?"
"Yeah, Kiba-baka does it all the time,"
"H-h-hai,"
The matriarch smiled at the two and pointed to herself with her thumb. "I do the same thing but with one jutsu and whatever my spirit is, that's what characteristics I take on. The technique we used is an old one that allows us to synchronize with our inner selves, our spirit, to better use our berserker abilities to their full potential. Let's use my son and fuzzy-ass an example,"
"…If I ever have your mother visit me in this pathetic excuse for a mind, I'll make sure she pays for that insult in a very special way…" Naruto ignored the fox king's threat and continued to listen to Reihitsu.
"When Naruto uses chakra from fuzzy and goes into a tailed state, he takes on attributes and characteristics of a kitsune such as claws, whisker marks, chakra ears, and his senses are heightened to the level of a kitsune," she explained, and the two children nodded in understanding. "That's the same thing with me, only my form won't be a fox because I don't have the same spirit as my son does. When I naturally entered my berserker mind set fighting Itachi-teme and you joined me, I recognized your scent as being family. I gave you the Kagami mark not only to show you as my son and a scion of the Kagami, but also so that I can remember your scent when I go berserk. So, any more questions about being a berserker kids?"
"Reihitsu-san, h-h-how will this t-t-t-raining help both of us?" asked Hinata, reminding the matriarch about her earlier statement she had almost forgotten about.
"For Naruto here, he will be learning control of his natural instincts both human and kitsune so he can be more aware in his tailed state. As for you princess, I'll be teaching you how to communicate with someone who is in a bijuu state since they will have animal instincts for short bit," she replied and immediately Naruto spoke up.
"Wait, is that how you told me to stand down and leave the weasel alone?" he asked Reihitsu, and she smiled at him then nodded.
Hinata blinked for a moment before remembering the barks and growls the matriarch had shot to Naruto followed by his immediate obedience by backing off. She blushed at the idea of having her crush at her command and she let out a squeak at the mental image. "I-I-I'll be able t-t-to command N-n-naruto-kun?"
"No, he obeyed me because even in his tailed state Naruto will always recognize me as his mother and the alpha-female of the family. In other words, my word is law to him. For you, he'll recognize you as a friend, and possible mate of course," she slyly said. The two friends turned bright red at the words possible mate, followed by Hinata becoming very aware of their current position.
Naruto still had his arms wrapped around her while she was still in his lap though they quickly broke apart as soon as they could. Reihitsu laughed at the two children's antics, earning her a glare from her blushing son while Hinata began studying the floor and tried not to picture Naruto acting like he did earlier and rubbing his cheek against hers. That image did not help her situation as she turned a brighter shade of red while Reihitsu slowly began to calm down though she still snickered every so often at the reaction she got from the two children.
"Okay you two lovebirds, enough of the blushing. We have serious training to do," stated Reihitsu, shifting from her role as simply mother and caregiver to matriarch and teacher. Naruto and Hinata listened to her attentively while also keeping themselves focused on their teacher and not the still blushing faces of each other. "To learn how to hear and communicate with your spirit you need to develop your spiritual awareness through meditation. Feel the flow of your energy, listen to the beating of your heart, and find your spirit by letting it come to you,"
She closed her eyes and began slowly inhaling and exhaling while she rested her arms in her lap with her fists lying against her leg. The two children exchanged glances before taking up similar positions while Reihitsu opened her eyes, revealing the shrunken state shape her pupils had taken on again. Without a word spoken, she smiled at the two as they began to take slow deep breaths and then exhaled. The little princess has a gentle yet strong spirit like the sunset, though with my son here, she has the confidence to shine like the sun. She turned her gaze onto Naruto to find the blond doing his best to try and keep himself calm. The blond had trouble with normal meditation, though he still tried as hard as he could and the results from his hard work reflected his determination. A guardian spirit just like your old man, a wild nature like me, but a heart all your own my child. You will make a hell of a shinobi one day, even with fuzzy ass inside of you, speaking of the furball…Her gaze drifted down to Naruto's stomach where the dim outline of his seal could be made out. Time to have a word with fuzzy ass about that little mark on my son's chest…This had better be worth it you damn bastard or I'm ripping a tail off. Reihitsu closed her eyes and began to relax while inside of her mind, a single shadow shot out of the large cave. Invisible to the three people meditating, a large gray glow began to surround the Matriarch, taking on the shape of a large canine that bent down to Naruto. The creature sniffed Naruto for a moment before shrinking into a ball and entering the blonde's stomach, creating a gray line between mother and child.
**********************************************
Inside of Naruto's mind, the red eyes of the fox king flickered for a moment as one of his tails swished and a large screen appeared in front of his cage. Lines went across from one side to the other constantly going up and down in waves yet never touching each other. With another swish of his tail, the screen vanished and Kyuubi let out an amused growl from his throat. The Kagami eh, how unfortunate for me that she is not unskilled as a berserker or I would have been able to at least get that infernal Uchiha in my claws. However, I am intrigued by her suggestion of the brat's choice of mate as the Hyuuga Princess, very interesting. His tails swished from side to side before growing still as he stretched his large limbs out inside of the darkness. The massive behemoth tilted his head from side to side, amused at the loud pops of his neck as he finished stretching his body. With a dark chuckle, he closed his eyes and his tails resumed their business, though with a bit of energy and an odd perk in their movement.
"You know the brat will be disappointed that his beloved mother is invading his privacy little girl," he said in a mock tone of chastisement, and he opened his eyes slowly as Reihitsu looked up at him with a defiant gaze as if his words had been mere whispers. "Shall I call him for you little girl or do you wish to amuse me and summon him yourself to explain your presence in this place?"
"That's Reihitsu-sama to you Kyuubi-no-baka, don't call my mother a little girl!" Kyuubi turned his head a little to see Naruto glaring at him with a large scowl on his face.
"Don't worry about me son, I could care less what the fuzzy bastard calls me because I know he's just an ass who can't deal with a woman who doesn't want him," said Reihitsu as she smirked at the bijuu before her. "Go ahead and resume your meditation Naruto, I need to have a word with fuzzy ass here about a few things like that star shit mark you have,"
Her son looked at her for a moment before nodding with a grin on his face. Then he turned to Kyuubi and his grin turned to a frown as he shot the large fox a glare. "Hurt my mom and your tails are mine,"
"Go back to your little spirit quest brat, the adults are talking here,"
"More like one adult and a big fat fox kit," whispered Naruto as he vanished from sight, leaving Kyuubi to glare at Reihitsu who simply smiled at him.
"I hold you responsible for his disrespect to me little girl. I will not tolerate that brat-,"
"-Shut the hell up you furry bastard, I'm not here to be your complaint box so can it," Reihitsu angrily said, her body glowing with gray light as she narrowed her eyes. "Try anything funny on my son and I'm ripping a tail off any way I can, you got that?
The behemoth studied the short woman before him for a moment, noting her sharp nails, small circles for pupils, and her sharp canine teeth. She returned his stare with one of defiance that only a few others had dared to give him, two of which were responsible of his imprisonment. The two remained silent for a while until it was broken by a dark chuckle from Kyuubi while Reihitsu continued to stare at him only fazed by his new tone when he spoke.
"Ah, so you are his mother, I should be angry with you for strengthening the seal through your relationship with the brat, however I am not. But before we start our little conversation…" Kyuubi's eyes seemed to shrink within the darkness and his loud voice seemed to grow smaller until his eyes stopped shrinking. The two dark red eyes fixed Reihitsu with a gaze that made her blink in surprise at the lack of anger within them that she expected. "I believe this form will make it easier to speak to you in without you pissing yourself girl,"
"Big words from a big furball, care to back up and explain the change in speech to me oh mighty furry-ass?" retorted Reihitsu sarcastically to red eyes staring at her.
"I'm a kitsune woman and I can change my form of course, how do you think I survived so long with just size and dumb speech alone, hmm?" replied Kyuubi with a chuckle as the matriarch began to glow with more gray light. "So, do you really care for the brat or are you just acting?"
Naruto felt a spike in emotion coming from his mother, and he looked up from the large hall he was in. He frowned at the possible reasons he could think of before simply hoping that if it was his tenant's fault that she would kick his butt. The young blond resumed his search for his spirit and made a quiet note to make the fox regret insulting his mother.
Said woman growled angrily at Kyuubi while the gray light around her grew to the size of a large wolf that mimicked Reihitsu's growling. "He is my child just as much as Kousei, Shiika, and Anko are! Call me a liar and I'll rip your tails off with my bare hands!"
"Kami must be enjoying my torment right now, such fire in a female," Reihitsu narrowed her eyes as the aura became still yet the wolf like image remained over her body like a shadow. Kyuubi chuckled at her furious glare while his eyes seemed to get larger to her, indicating movement from the bijuu. "I have to say Reihitsu-chan; you are beautiful when you're angry,"
"And the only good thing about is your size makes up for your lack of balls," she replied with a smirk, expecting the fox king to return her insult with one of his own. But he didn't, instead the eyes seemed to glow as he began to laugh. I'm having fox tails for dinner tonight, she told herself as both she and the wolf darkly smiled at the idea.
"Ah, and she has one hell of a wild side to boot! You woman, are a rare catch for any male of any species…" Kyuubi smiled while Reihitsu bared her teeth at him along with the wolf-like aura as his roamed over her body and the wolf vanished. Suddenly a blast of fire shot into the cage, narrowly missing the eyes as Reihitsu glared at him with small pupils and smoke coming out of her mouth. "Fiery and feisty, you must be one hell of a woman when you're heat,"
The matriarch gave a large toothy grin, showing off her sharp teeth while she crouched low to the ground on her hands and feet, ready to strike at a moment's notice. "Coming from you I guess that's a compliment?"
"More like a proposition vixen, are you interested?"
Reihitsu stared at Kyuubi in surprise, lowering her brows like a dog would when confused, and her eyes narrowed as she sniffed the air carefully. Kyuubi simply chuckled and smiled in the darkness only for Reihitsu to snarl at him while arching her back up in anger.
"So the senses are included in the channeling, quite the ability you have there, my short vixen," he whispered into her ear, causing her to snap her head around in surprise and swipe at the origin of the voice only to find her nails going through thin air. "Hearing as well as sight and smell, interesting…"
"You threw your voice behind me…" she growled as she spun around again with her claws in a vicious double swipe in anger at being tricked a second time.
"Ah, you have a wonderful backside for one so short vixen," the bijuu said as Reihitsu turned back to him no longer crouched over in anger but standing tall with defiance. "It's a compliment woman, I find your physique to be quite attractive, and you carry yourself like a warrior,"
The matriarch smirked and rolled her eyes at Kyuubi. "Flatter me all you like, but I'm here for a reason fox,"
"My my short vixen, are we feeling a little aroused?" Reihitsu shivered from the close proximity of his voice to her ear, and she silently cursed ventriloquism. The voice had sounded like the bijuu was right behind her with his mouth near her ear, something that would normally scare thousands, made her shiver with a bit of excite. Damn it, he's using my enhanced- "-'Senses against me the cunning bastard.' Why short vixen, I didn't know you cared about me so much,"
"Would you like to have a small cage and no link to Naruto's senses or better yet, chains that amplify the seal's filtering ability? Take your pick and I can have Han add them in an instant," she countered with a smile only for Kyuubi to smirk at her while chuckling.
"Oh those two would be wonderful along with the Kyokukan Hyoushou. Did you know that it can be reversed by simply altering the path of the chakra flow out of the source?" The behemoth smiled down at Reihitsu for a moment before he took a sudden swipe at her. She moved to the side out of the way only to realize that the claws had stopped short and she growled at Kyuubi. "Actually, I don't have to always stay behind these bars, not anymore thanks to the Kitsune Mon he now bears,"
Reihitsu's eyes widened at the revelation while Kyuubi smirked and his eyes seemed to fade into the darkness of his prison. The matriarch broke out of her trance when she felt something off about her surroundings and she began searching the cage. Her eyes darted over every inch and every corner she could see with her eyes through the darkness albeit dimly. She was too busy with her search to notice the seal on the bars was no longer on paper but the actual metal itself.
As she finished her search, her thoughts went to her son's safety and she quickly turned around to begin searching for Naruto when she came face to face with a red eyed young man. Her eyes roamed across his body, noting the large silver cloth wrapped around him, hiding his body from her sight except for the nine fox tails swirling behind him. Reihitsu stared at his tails for a moment before honing in on the man's eyes, noting the blackish outline around them and how the pupils were slits and had odd little flecks of black pointing out on each side. Those eyes look just like fuzzy-ass's eyes…wait a second, those are his eyes! She quickly looked from cage to the man in front of her, back to the cage, then back to the man several times while the man simply chuckled at her.
"How in the hell did you get out of your cage?" she asked as she turned her head back to the young man only to find herself staring at his leg and then up to his eyes. He's fast…and too close! Reihitsu growled and bit down on the whimper that threatened to escape her throat.
"The Kitsune Mon of course, I can only take a human form outside of the cage and my chakra is kept within the cage," explained Kyuubi. The matriarch resisted the urge to gulp as the fox king began circling her while studying her carefully. "The brat will be getting a few, additional benefits from that little mark such as the ability to use kitsune-bi for example. Just thought I should let you know,"
"Go figure that would happen with something called a Kitsune Mon, dumbass," retorted Reihitsu and Kyuubi stopped circling her so that he was standing on her left still staring at her.
The stare had no anger in it or any emotion, yet the matriarch could feel her animal instincts switching from fear to anger rapidly. Damn it that stare of his is making me get mixed signals from my instincts, he's making me treat him like another wolf! She forced herself to focus on the thoughts of her children and deceased husband, giving her the incentive needed to focus on her anger. With a snarl, her body began leaking out gray light on her back acting like fur which bristled with her rage while she narrowed her eyes. Time to get out of here…The matriarch started to relax for a moment to focus back on the link to her body when she realized her mistake. Shit I forgot he's still here! Before she could recover and react, Kyuubi had already grabbed her and pinned her to the ground with tails standing up at attention. His large orange eyes burrowed into hers as she struggled to get out of his surprisingly strong grasp.
"Like I said earlier, fiery and feisty, you are a rare catch for any male of any species, and you are like a mother bear when it comes to her cubs. I like that in a vixen," whispered Kyuubi in a low animalistic tone, adding a low growl when he said the word vixen. Reihitsu felt herself shiver at his voice, and part of her instincts began to react to the heavy scent the fox king in a way that caused her to curse them. Shit did not just get real with my hormones! She tried to bring herself out of the merger but her heightened senses went on overload when she felt Kyuubi's breath on her neck. "In fact, I have been looking for a mate for a few centuries now plus you're my first female visitor as well…"
"I'm the only female visitor you've had!"
"Ah, a minor technicality and I don't smell any complaints coming from you," he grinned.
Reihitsu's eyes dilated for a split second in a mix of rage and surprise before she brought her hands up to slash him but he pinned them to the wall with two of his tails. Unable to escape at the moment and with her temper already past the threshold, she did the only thing she could. Kick him in the groin."Damn my instincts for reacting to you, damn you for hitting on me, and damn you to hell you sorry flea-bitten fox bastard for pissing me off!"
She continued kicking unaware of the second Kyuubi standing behind her with a large grin on her face as she kicked the first many more times before finally catching his stifled chuckles. The matriarch spun around in surprise as she was again pinned to the wall, cushioned by several tails while her captor smiled at her and kissed her on the lips.
Her eyes shot open at the contact and the heat coming from Kyuubi while her instincts went past overload several times. All her training and instincts cried out for retribution in the form of Kyuubi's tails for a coat but her mind was unable to respond to the cries. The matriarch did nothing more than stand there for a moment as Kyuubi broke off and licked his lips in satisfaction.
"Such an exotic taste, I think I will enjoy our future visits better," said Kyuubi with a smirk on his face as his words snapped Reihitsu out of her trance and her rage took over.
"I'LL USE YOUR BODY FOR MY PUNCHING BAG BASTARD!"
"Another time perhaps my future lover, but not today," Before she could swipe at him with her claws, a surge of red light pushed her up into the ceiling. The fox king smirked as he licked his lips again and walked back into the cage filled with darkness, the white cloth disappearing as soon as he stepped foot inside. The seal mark lifted up as the paper reappeared on the bars and glowed while Kyuubi looked at the wall where a large screen appeared showing Reihitsu in her berserker form fighting Itachi. I wouldn't mind the price of having the Kitsune Mon reach full maturity. Having that fiery wolf beg me to bear my pups would be reward enough, and I would enjoy giving the brat a few siblings. He chuckled at the thought of little children with fox tails and ears playing together while he gave Naruto some questionable sparring practice. I look forward to our next meeting my Reihitsu-chan…
**********************************************
"Damn fox!" spat Reihitsu causing her two students to jump at the sudden shout.
"Are you a-a-alright Reihitsu-sama?" asked Hinata as she noticed the older woman's blush.
"What did you two talk about?" Naruto added, oblivious to the slight blush to his mother's cheeks.
The matriarch took a few moments to calm down while her features returned to normal though she was still angry as well as slightly aroused. She growled at the memory before letting out a heavy sigh and addressed Naruto and Hinata. "I'll get him back for this..."
"Tell me what that bastard did and I'll make him dream of fangirls for the next month!" he proclaimed and his tenant snickered at him. "Pathetic threat at the most brat, I've cleaned my toothpicks with fangirls many a decade." He stated much to Naruto's annoyance.
"Did he say-y-y what Naruto-kun-n-n's mark means?" He looked over at Hinata and shot her a surprised look. "G-g-g-omen, I was curious…"
"Forget it kid. Anyway, the mark is called a Kitsune Mon, and the bastard told me it's why Naruto's senses are heightened. My guess is it has something to do with your connection via the seal allowing you to gain the traits and abilities of a kitsune, maybe even kitsune-bi if we're lucky," explained Reihitsu. She stood up then motioned for them to follow and they headed back to the dojo.
Naruto's eyes lit up as he thought about being able to breathe fire like Sasuke could. "Imbecile, a kitsune does not learn how to breathe fire in a human form till they reach two tails of age. Do not forget you are not a kitsune and at the most you can only throw the flames from your hands," Kyuubi's words annoyed the blonde as they walked and he decided to ask about the conversation his mom had with his tenant. The blond took a moment to warn Hinata, breaking her out of her thoughts and she looked away after nodding to him. She had been envisioning Naruto with five yellow fox tails and a pair of yellow ears on top of his head. Her mind had soon began to picture a foxy Naruto as her husband with several foxy children, then herself at which point the real blond had awakened her from her daydream.
"I'm going to have a chat with Kyuubi-teme, keep an eye on me okay Hinata-chan?" he asked only to be floored by the killing intent rolling off Reihitsu's body. The two latched onto each other for protection as the matriarch slowly turned to them.
Chizu and Chizu-cho were coming out of the dojo when they sensed the killing intent rolling off their clan leader. Sasuke was training with Kakashi when the white-haired man froze in place and didn't react to kick at all causing the Uchiha to turn to the source. Even Shiika who was walking hand-in-hand with Shino to greet her brother and friend latched onto the Aburame's side, whimpering in fear at the aura.
"Sweetie, please let me give the fox a message," she said with a smile. The two children gulped at the polite tone in Reihitsu's voice that masked the heavy amount of anger swelling up within her. "I look forward to removing his tails one by one while I burn his body to ashes,"
Naruto shivered at the anger radiating from his mother before nodding to let her know the message was received. Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief and relaxed when the aura faded away while Reihitsu calmly resumed her walk to the dojo. You should not have pissed her off Kyuubi-teme, he warned the fox king. "As if a mere mortal, a pretty one at that, could cause me to fear her. Besides, I think she liked that kiss I gave her." The fox king chuckled as he felt Naruto's anger rise for a moment before suddenly dying out as if an outside force was cutting it off. Curious about the sudden change, he looked through his jailor's eyes to find Hinata giving his arm a gentle squeeze. Suddenly the screen went dead and Kyuubi frowned at the brief image. "Do you think a simple blackout of information will stop me brat?" he questioned. If you so much as think about Hinata-chan, I'll make you dream of nothing but Gai-ojisan hugging Lee-kun with the sunset scene for three weeks, and don't think I don't know how! The bijuu shivered at the image and grew quiet out of silent fear at the dreaded scene. Even he knew better than to try and provoke someone when they had that kind of bargaining chip as no cure existed to get rid of that memory.
Hinata watched Naruto as his pupils focused for a moment before he turned to her and smiled. No sooner had he done so though when he was greeted by Chizu and Chizu-cho who shivered as they walked past Reihitsu.
"Hey Naruto-kun, Hinata-chan, what was that about?" asked Chizu while Chizu-cho shivered again.
"I haven't seen her that angry in a long time…" added Chizu-cho.
"I d-d-don't know…"
Naruto sighed and explained what had happened, including whispering the farewell that Kyuubi had given Reihitsu. He quickly made a mental note to ask Hinata to help him find some way to block out his tenant's voice as laugher echoed in his mind when he mentioned the kiss. The twins were just as amused as Kyuubi while Hinata shot them a shocked look to their reactions.
"Y-y-you shouldn't laugh at Reihitsu-sama," she chastised the two to no avail as they continued to laugh.
Hinata shook her head in disappointment before looking to Naruto for help. The blonde patted her on the shoulder and lead her to the dojo. "Don't worry about my kaa-san Hinata-chan. She can take care of fuzzy-ass and I know she'll add interest for what he did,"
"Perhaps she might kiss him back," suggested Chizu as they began to calm down.
"They might start making out even," added Chizu-cho.
"Our poor dear cousin will never get any meditation done…"
"I never thought I'd see the day when our dear matriarch would ever get another husband!"
Naruto stopped in mid-step causing Hinata to turn to him. She opened her mouth to ask him why they had stopped when he picked her up and shot over to rest area across from the dojo. A few of the clan members along with Mikoto and Hikaru quickly moved to the rest area, including Yoyate who was carrying Eishi and Hanabi in her arms. Hinata looked at them in confusion before Naruto pointed to the dojo where a massive source of killing intent that put the first wave from Reihitsu to shame was coming from.
"Uh-oh itoko, I'd make that mindscape of yours bigger if I were you," teased Chizu only to look around in confusion. "Where did he go?"
"Ah I see him aniki but I wonder why he didn't want to hear about Reihitsu-sama and Kyuubi-sama?" his brother questioned. He looked over when he did not hear a response to find Chizu's mouth hanging open with a look of horror on his face. A shiver went down Chizu-cho's spine as he felt the waves of killing intent scorch the hairs on his neck.
"……"
"She's behind me isn't she aniki,"
Nod.
"Thank you for volunteering to be my sparring partners, I hope you two don't hold back on me," Reihitsu cheerfully said with a large smile. Naruto could only shake his head and chuckle weakly at his cousins as they began to shake like leaves under short woman's gaze. Her eyes grew dark along with her smile and she cracked her knuckles ominously with sadistic anticipation. "Get ready boys 'cuz I have a lot of aggression to work out today,"
"Please have mer-!"
WHAM!
"Save me a seat in heaven Chizu!"
"Welcome to hell dum-dums, kage bunshin no jutsu,"
Poof-poof!
"Mommie!"
BAM! WHAM! WHAM! CRUNCH!
Sasuke stared in shock at the sheer ferocity of his teacher as she knocked her two cousins around like ragdolls and he started to run over to help the two out but Naruto pulled him back. The raven haired boy gave his friend a confused look before removing his arm from his grasp then running over to a fallen and bloody Chizu who was trying to crawl away and spotted Sasuke.
"Don't try to help meeeaaaaaiieeee!" he screamed as he was tossed over to Reihitsu by a clone and the original caught him then planted him head first into the ground.
The clone smiled sadistically as the third Reihitsu joined the second one and they both turned to Sasuke who could only whimper before he was tossed into the dark red dust cloud. Naruto winced as he heard Sasuke screamed and he looked over to Mikoto to find her sighing and shaking her head.
"Your poor brother may not live to see you if he doesn't learn how to avoid Reihitsu-chan," she whispered to her stomach and Hinata's eyes widened in shock.
"Reihitsu-sama wouldn't k-k-kill them, would s-s-she Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked her crush as Sasuke used a substitution.
"Nah, she only beats them up enough to be put in our infirmary for a few days so they'll live," he replied and a Sasuke-shaped missile came screaming towards them.
Naruto sighed while activating his Tate Hyoushou before lifting his arm up in time for Sasuke to crash into the violet-red shield. The unlucky heir was covered in bruises and half his shirt was missing along with half of his pants, still whimpering from the pain he had just endured. Mikoto calmly walked over with Yoyate in two and began healing him as Hinata tightened her grip on Naruto's arm.
"…the light…it was red…the light…" Sasuke whispered and he closed his eyes.
"I'll take you to see Suisen-chan and her team in the morning and you can forget this whole thing," his mother told him. A smile spread across the injured boy's face painfully as he made an small 'hn' of approval.
Hinata stared at the numerous injuries before slowly turning to Naruto and gave a frightened whimper when a loud crash followed by dark laughter was heard. Anko promptly fainted with a large smile on her face into Kakashi's arms while Naruto tried not to wince at one of the cousin's screams, though which one he could not tell. The blond turned to his friend with a grim face before putting an arm around her protectively.
"…I hope they die quickly," he stated and Eishi gave a solemn nod in agreement.
Hanabi on the other hand looked from Anko to Reihitsu before turning to her mother and tugged on her kimono. "Yes my little Hanabi-chan?"
"Can Reihitsu-sama be my sensei kaa-san?"
**********************************************
Sarutobi heard another scream in the air and winced while his grandson looked up at him in confusion at the screams. I am not doing that paperwork tomorrow…He gave his grandson a simple explanation to the screams. A pair of twins getting the shit beat out of them.
In the Konoha Interrogation Wing of the ANBU headquarters, Ibiki paused for a moment at the sound of a pair of girlish screams. The scarred man grinned as he recognized the pitch and took a moment to chuckle.
"Sounds like Reihitsu-sensei is having fun tonight," Kotetsu and Izumo exchanged glances before opening the door and leading in the next prisoner just as another screamed pierced the air. "May Kami have mercy on the poor soul she's mad at…"
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Inside his cell within Naruto's mindscape, Kyuubi sneezed.
Author: Finally it is complete, thank heaven!
Nexus: Do you have next chapter planned out yet? Are we going to see some pairings soon?
Author: Yes and yes.
Bladeheart: You aren't going to put us in this or so help me...
Nexus: Aw, but we'd look so cool!
Author: True. Anyway would you do the translations please, I need to start working on the next chapter plus the genin graduation and what not. I have timeskip planned and a pairing to get out of the way...(leaves while still talking)
Nexus: K, bye! (turns to audience) Mon means badge and that's it.
Bladeheart: That was short.
Nexus: Yep. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the chapters to come where Naruto strutts his stuff and rats will get owned!
Bladeheart: Sweet....(Blinks) Where the hell did that banner come from?
Thanks for reading, please submit a review and tell me what you think, every opinion helps in its own unique way! No actual twins or Sasuke's were hurt in the making of this chapter, except for Canon Sasuke.